School desk and seat.



110.801,114. PATENTED OCT. 3,1905.

E. SMERING.

SCHOOL DESK AND SEAT.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 7, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

@theme95 110.801,114. PATENTBD ocT,-. s,19o5.

5. SMERING.

SCHOOL DESK AND SEAT.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 7.1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 24 I ,Wwf/21W WW ttomegs UNITED STATES PATENT EEICE.

SCHOOL DESK AND SEAT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 3, 1905.

Application filed September '7, 1904. Serial No1 223,583.

To JZ Aiff/mnt it mfr/y concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD SMERING, a citizen of the United States, residing' at Chester, in the county of Chester and State of South Carolina, have invented a new and useful School Desk and Seat, of which the following is a speciiication.

This invention relates to desks, and has for its object to provide an improved arrangement of desk and seat mounted upon a single support and adapted for school use.

It is furthermore designed to support the desk and seat in a manner to facilitate the sweeping of the floor and to obtain a vertical adjustment of the desk and the seat, so as to accommodate the same to scholars of different heights.

Another object of the invention is to provide for adjustably tilting the' top of the desk so as to have the same assume the desired inclination with respect to the scholar. In this connection it is designed to have the adjusting means arranged in position for convenient access without removing any of the parts of the desk, whereby the inclination of the top of the desk may be readily changed by the scholar without requiring any particular degree of skill or experience.

lith these and other objects in view the present invention consists in the combination and'arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter more fully described, shown in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that changes in the form, proportion, size, and minor details may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the accompanyingdrawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the supportingframe of the present invention, the top of the desk, the seat, and the seat-back being omitted. Eig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of the desk and seat completed. Fig. 3 is a detail side elevation, parts being broken away to show the propping means for adjustably tilting the top of the desk. Fig. A is a detail sectional view illustrating the ink-well of the desk. Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view on the line 5 5 of Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view on the line 6 6 of Fig. 2. Fig. 7 is a detail sectional view on the line 7 7 of Eig. 2.

Like characters of reference designate corresponding parts in each and every lfigure of the drawings.

In accordance with the present invention a desk and a seat are mounted upon one and the same support, and the support is in the nature of a pedestal 1, which is solid at the top and hollow at the bottom and flared downwardly with a lower peripheral iiange 2, through which suitable fastenings 3 are passed to rigidly secure the pedestal upon the floor. In the solid top of the pedestal are provided front and rear upright seats or sockets 4 and 5, with a transverse bifurcation 6 located intermediate of the sockets. The front socket is pierced by set-screws 7 and 8, disposed at substantially right angles to one another, there being a similar arrangement of setscrews 9 and 10 for the rear socket 5.

In the rear socket 5 is a vertically-adjustable post 11, which projects above the pedestal and is provided with adjacent liat faces 12 and 13 for engagement by the respective set-screws 9 and 10 to adjustably support the post and to prevent rotation thereof. A cross-head 14 is carried by the top of the post and terminates at each end in a rearwardly-directed arm 15, to the outer side of which one of the stationary frame members 16 of the desk is secured. Each stationary frame member is of inverted substantially L shape and is an openwork casting or grating with its lower end portion imperforate and detachablv secured to the arm 15 by means of bolts 17. The front edge of each stationary frame member is provided with an outwardly-directed longitudinal flange 18, against which the seat-back 16 is secured by means of suitable fastenings, each flange being provided with a series of perforations for the reception of the fastenings. Each flange 18 is projected below the top of the pedestal, as indicated at 18, and the seatback 19 extends to the bottoms of the flanges and is received within the bifurcation 6 of the pedestal. Each extended flange portion 18 is supported by a brace 21, pendent from the lower end of the stationary frame.. It will here be noted that the seat-back 19 extends below the seat in order that the scholar sitting at the desk may not mischievously interfere with the scholar upon the seat in front of the desk.

At the inner side of each side frame there is a segmental top frame member or arm 22, which is of skeleton or open-work form and is pivotally connected at its rear end to the IOO adjacent side frame, as at 23, so as to swing in a vertical plane. Normally the top edge of the top frame 22 is flush with the upper edge of the adjacent side frame and is provided with a longitudinal inwardly-directcd flange 24, pierced by a series of perforations for the reception of suitable fastenings to secure the top 25 thereto. It will here be explained that the top of the desk is carried by the top frame members 24 so as to be capable of elevation therewith and engages the top edges of the side frame members in the horizontal position of the desk-top only. Then the desk-top is horizontal, each top frame member 22 has its lower edge resting upon a stop-shoulder 26,

directed inwardly from the adjacent side frame For the adjustable support of the top frame member there is an arcuate rack 27 formed upon the inner face of the adjacent side frame 16 and extending' upwardly from the stopshoulder 26. This rack is disposed upon an are struck from the pivot 23 and has its teeth upon the front side of the rack. The forward and free end of the top frame 22 is provided with an inwardly-offset portion 22, which may be solid, as shown, or of skeleton form, as desired, and is designed to accommodate the rack. Upon the inner side of the offset portion 22l is a ratchet-dog 28, having an upstanding handle 29, extending substantially to the top of the member 22, the forward top edge portion of the adjacent stationary frame 16 having a recess or opening 30 to expose the upper end of the handle 29 at the outer side of the frame, and thereby permit of convenient manual manipulation of the dog to disengage the same from the rack when it is desired to lower the desk-top. The desk-top can of course be drawn upwardly without manipulation of the dog, as the latter works over the rack 27 in proper direction; but it is of course necessary to manually manipulate the dog when lowering the top. It will here be explained that the rack 27 and the dog 28 are located between the frame and the adjacent side of the top in order that they may not be interfered with by the introduction and removal of books and the like from the interior of the desk.

For the support of the bottom 31 of the desk each stationary frame 16 is provided upon its inner face with a substantially horizontal ledge or flange 32, terminating at its outer end in an upstanding shoulder 33, there being projections or shoulders 34 upon the frame and above the ledge, so as to overlap the bottom 31 and prevent looseness thereof. Itwillbe understood that the guideway formed by the ledge 32 and the projections 34 is open at its front end and the bottom 31 is introduced from the front of the desk prior to the application of the back 19, whereby the back serves to prevent forward displacement of the bottom and the shoulder 33 to prevent forward displacement thereof, and the bottom is therefore held in place without the employmentof screws or similar fastening' devices.

The desk-top is provided with a transverse groove 35 at its forward end for the reception of pencils, penholders, and the like, and at one end of the groove is an ink-well 36, which is hung from the top 25 and has its upper open end accessible at the upper face of the top and provided with an annular flange 37, fitted in a seat in the top.

In front of the desk is a seat-post 44, having the respective flat faces 45 and 46 for en'- gagement by the set-screws 7 and 8 to-adjustably support the post. A cross-head 47 is carried by the top of the seat-post and has a rearwardly-directed longitudinal flange 48 at the top of the cross-head and forwardly-directed arms 49 at the ends of the cross-head. From the inner face of each arm 49 is an integral boss or hub 50, pierced by a central opening extending entirely through the arm. Upon each of these bosses or hubs is a seat-bracket 51, having' an eye or opening 52 receiving the hub or boss. there being a bolt 53 passed through the hub and the arm, so as to pivotally retain the bracket upon the arm. The upper edge of the bracket is provided with an inwardly-directed longitudinal Vtlange 54, to which the seat 55 is connected. The inner end of each bracket is weighted, as at 56, so as to normally maintain the seat in an upright position, so as not to obstruct the interval between the seat and the desk in front thereof, whereby a scholar may readily enter between the seat and the desk and then depress the seat into a horizontal position for use. At the lower rear end portion of each bracket 51 is a rearwardly-direeted shoulder 57, which engages the under side of the cross-head 47 in the horizontal position of the seat, thereby to support the latter when in use. A stop projection 58 extends outwardly from each bracket in position to engage the upper edge of the adjacent arm 49 in the upright position of the bracket, so as to maintain the seat upright when not in use.

Having fully described the invention, what is claimed is- 1. In a desk, the combination of a frame, a top tiltably mounted upon the frame and. provided with pendent sides, and means located between the frame and one of the sides of the top to adjustably support the latter, the frame being provided with an opening to give access to the supporting means.

2. In a desk, the combination of a frame, a top tiltably mounted upon the frame and provided with pendent sides, a rack carried by the inner side of theframe between the latter and the adjacent side of the top, and a detent carried by the top and engaging the rack to adjustably support the top, the frame having an opening to give access to the detent for manipulation thereof.

TOO

IIO

3. In a desk, the combination of a frame, a top tiltably mounted thereon and provided with pendent sides, an upright rack carried by the inner side of the frame between the latter and one of the sides of the top, a detent carried by the top and engaging' the rack, a handle rising from the detent, and the top edge of the4 ing an upstanding rack adjacent the front thereof and provided with a depression in its top edge adjacent the rack, a top hinged at its rear to the frame, a side member hung from the top and provided with an ofset portion receiving the rack, and a detent pivotally carried within the offset portion of the side member in cooperative relation with the rack and provided with a handle which is accessible through the depression in the top of the frame.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto aiXed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

EDWARD SMERING.

fitnessesz D. J. MACAULAY, G. B. WHITE. 

